Nearly 200,000 people were evacuated from the area surrounding the nuclear plant, and the humanitarian crisis continued; many parts of Japan still lack power and access to food has been difficult. As winds shifted to blow some of the radiation south, toward the capital of Tokyo, Japan’s prime minister warned those living within 20 miles of the plant to stay indoors. But the U.S. government warned Americans in Japan to stay much farther away from the nuclear site, as did other foreign nationals, with Austria moving its embassy from Tokyo to the southern city of Osaka.

Early warnings: According to a diplomatic cable leaked by WikiLeaks, the International Atomic Energy Agency had warned Japan more than two years ago its safety measures were out of date, and that strong earthquakes would pose “serious problems” for their nuclear reactors. But Japan has had “an unfortunate track record of downplaying or concealing mishaps,” according to the think tank Chatham House. As early as 1972, regulators were warned about apparent flaws in the design of the reactors in Japan — the Mark 1 model.

Food fight in congressional cafeteria: Meanwhile, back in Washington, D.C., the new Congress has been beating back some of the changes put in place recently — including in the cafeteria. Four years ago, Nancy Pelosi, then House speaker, had put in place many changes to cut Congress’s carbon footprint, including biodegradable utensils and trays made from corn. Now Republicans have reversed these measures, bringing back styrofoam cups and, as the new speaker’s press secretary put it in a tweet, “The new majority — plasticware is back.”